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Meeting Real Needs in Your Neighborhood
Table of ContentsThe Catholic Church
A Snapshot
The People of God
Catholic Parishes
Priests, Deacons, and Religious
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Catholic Elementary and Secondary Education
How Catholic schools are funded
Catholic Colleges and Universities
Catholic Health Care and Social Services
Catholic Charities: Providing Help, Creating Hope
Humanitarian Aid
Catholic Involvement in Affordable Housing
Welcoming Migrants & Refugees
Migration and Refugee Services
Pastoral Care for Immigrants and People On the Move
Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC)
Catholic Lay Organizations
Knights of Columbus
Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary
Society of St. Vincent de Paul
The Catholic Church Extension Society of America
Church Finances
Parish Giving
Bishops' Annual Diocesan Appeals
National Collections
The Catholic Church
A Snapshot
There are 5,252 religious brothers and 67,773 religious sisters in the United States.26
6,414 sisters and 1,149 brothers teach in Catholic elementary and secondary schools.27
438 new priests were ordained in 2005. The average age of this year's newly-ordained priest is 37. 10 percent of the class is Hispanic, down from 12 percent last year.28
14,493 men - over 90 percent of whom are married - serve as permanent deacons in the United States. The permanent diaconate, restored by the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), is a vital ministry in the United States and has grown an average of 10 percent annually. In addition to holding full-time jobs in their places of work, permanent deacons assist in the worship life of the local faith community by preaching, baptizing, teaching, witnessing marriages, officiating at funerals, and sometimes serving as a parish life coordinator in the absence of a priest.
For more information on the priesthood, diaconate, and religious life, visit:
The bishops themselves constitute the membership of the Conference and are served by a staff of over 350 lay people, priests and religious located at the Conference headquarters in Washington. There is also an Office of Film and Broadcasting in New York City and a branch office of Migration and Refugee Services in Miami. With a 2004 budget of $127.1 million, the Conference is organized as a corporation in the District of Columbia.32
Its purposes under civil law are: "To unify, coordinate, encourage, promote and carry on Catholic activities in the United States; to organize and conduct religious, charitable and social welfare work at home and abroad; to aid in education; to care for immigrants; and generally to enter into and promote by education, publication and direction the objects of its being."
The Catholic Church runs the largest network of private schools in the United States. Over 2.5 million students33 are enrolled in its 6,386 elementary schools and 1,203 high schools.34 In addition, in 2003, 3,612,510 elementary school students and 771,730 high school students received religious instruction outside Catholic schools.
Over 720,000 students attend 221 Catholic colleges and universities in the United States.55 Of these, almost all are governed by a lay board of trustees. Like their secular, private counterparts, Catholic universities rely primarily on tuition for revenue and many also rely on public and private grants and donations. Eleven institutions are sponsored by dioceses but receive no direct financial assistance. The Catholic University of America in Washington is the only institution sponsored and partially funded directly by the Church. The balance of Catholic colleges and universities are sponsored by their founding religious congregations, such as the Jesuits, who run 28 colleges and universities. Catholic colleges and universities in the United States account for nearly half of all of the Catholic universities in the world. Catholic colleges and universities account for over half of all the students enrolled in faith-based institutions of higher education in the United States.56
Catholic Health Care and Social Services
Catholic health and social service organizations have a long tradition of service in the United States, dating back to New Orleans in 1727 when 12 French Ursuline sisters arrived in the city and became nurses, teachers, and servants of the poor and orphans. Today, the Catholic nonprofit health-care system serves diverse populations in every state in the United States.
The Catholic Charities network is the nation's fourth largest non-profit, according to The NonProfit Times. The combined revenue of the Catholic Charities network from all sources, public and private, was $2.69 billion in 2000. Nearly 90 percent of these funds were spent on programs and services, making the Catholic Charities network one of the country's most efficient charities.68
Founded in 1943 by the U.S. Bishops, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the official overseas relief and development agency of the U.S. Catholic community. CRS provides direct aid to the poor, and involves people in their own development, helping them to realize their potential. CRS reached 80 million people in 99 countries and territories in 2002, bringing relief in the wake of disasters and offering hope and the opportunity to achieve self-sufficiency to the poorest of the poor.71
Catholic Involvement in Affordable Housing
Catholic organizations play a sizable role as part of the nonprofit sector that increasingly is relied upon to provide housing for people with low incomes and special needs. Catholic organizations, often assisted by government funding, have been responsible for building and rehabilitating more than 51,400 units of multi-family, single-family and congregate units – valued at a minimum of $2.9 billion – housing more than 70,000 residents. 75
"The new communities of Catholics that exist throughout this nation are vital resources and strengths to be integrated fully into the Catholic Church in the United States. The challenge to affirm and serve these groups is felt strongly by the Catholic Bishops of the United States…"
Over 135 national and hundreds more local Catholic lay organizations serve the Church and provide direct services in communities throughout the United States. Here is a spotlight on just four of these organizations: the Knights of Columbus, the Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and the Catholic Extension Society.
Church Finances
The Catholic Church is able to carry out its good works in large part due to the generosity of her people. Catholics financially support their Church primarily through the Sunday offertory collection; annual bishops' appeals, which support diocesan-sponsored causes; and 13 national collections coordinated by the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Bishops' Annual Diocesan Appeals
For more information, visit www.usccb.org/crscollection
69.1 million Catholics (23% of the U.S. population)1
18,992 parishes2 (46 new parishes in 2005)3
42,271 priests / 5,252 brothers / 67,773 sisters4
573 Catholic hospitals treated 84.7 million patients in 20055
6,511 elementary schools and 1,354 high schools, with over 2.5 million students enrolled6
231 Catholic colleges and universities with a total of 763,757 students7
The People of God
In 2005, there were 69.1 million Catholics in the United States representing about 23% of the total U.S. population.8
In 2005, 73,684 people were received into full communion with the Catholic Church.9 In addition, 80,817 adults and 943,264 infants were baptized.10
Who Identify as Catholic11
Approximately 39% - or 26.4 million – of U.S. Catholics are Hispanic.12
25 of the nation's 273 active bishops, are Hispanic. 2,900 of the nation's 44,212 priests are Hispanic.13
Hispanics make up 41% of all Catholics under age 30, and 44% of all Catholics under age 10.14
Since 1960, 71% of the U.S. Catholic population growth has been due to the growth in the number of Hispanics in the U.S. population overall.15 By the second decade of the 21st century, over 50% of U.S. Catholics will likely be Hispanic.16
There are 4.1 million people who identify themselves as Native American; 493,615 of these Native Americans, or 12 percent of the total population, are considered Catholic. Currently, there are two Native American bishops in active service in the United States.17
There are 2.3 million African American Catholics. There are 1,300 parishes which are predominantly African American, 75 of which have African-American pastors. Approximately 250 priests, 300 sisters, and 380 deacons are African American.18
Catholic Parishes
In 2005, 18,992 parishes in the 194 dioceses and eparchies (dioceses of the Eastern Catholic Church) of the United States serve the nation's 69.1 million Catholics.19 In 2005, 46 new parishes opened their doors.20 In 2000, the average parish had 3,254 members, or 1,269 households.21 In 2000, a typical non-Catholic congregation included approximately 303 members.
The average parish has grown about 10 percent per decade. Between 2000 and 2001, 165,924 additional households registered at Catholic parishes.23
Priests, Deacons, and Vowed Religious
Did you know…
42,271 priests serve in the United States. Of these, 32.2% - or 13,640 - belong to religious orders.25
There have been more than 500 religious orders in the United States, each with independent missions.30
Traditionally, vowed religious (brothers and nuns) worked for modest stipends or maintenance that did not include pension benefits. The FICA (Social Security) payments that religious institutes began to submit for their members in the early 1970s were based on their low cost of living allowances compatible with a vow of poverty. That means that Social Security benefits to individual religious women and men are less than one-third what other Americans receive.31
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is an assembly of the hierarchy of the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands who jointly exercise certain pastoral functions on behalf of the Christian faithful of the United States. The purpose of the Conference is to promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate fittingly adapted to the circumstances of time and place. This purpose is drawn from the universal law of the Church and applies to the episcopal conferences which are established all over the world for the same purpose.
Find out more about the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at www.usccb.org.
Catholic Elementary and Secondary Education
Did you know…
For more information, visit the National Catholic Educational Association at www.ncea.org or the USCCB Department of Education at www.usccb.org/education
2001-200342
in Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools
2002-200343
How Catholic schools are funded
85% of Catholic elementary schools received a parish subsidy during the 2004-2005 school year.44 On average, Catholic elementary schools received 22 percent of their budget from parish subsidy.45 This transfer of cash from the parish to the parish school likely amounted to approximately $1.3 billion for the year 2000,46 and an estimated $1.44 billion for 2002.47
from Various Sources54
Catholic Colleges and Universities
Did you know…
For more information, visit the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities at www.accunet.org and the USCCB Department of Education at www.usccb.org/education
615 Catholic hospitals account for 12.5% of community hospitals in the United States, and over 15.5% of all U.S. hospital admissions.61 Catholic health care systems and hospitals are present in all 50 states.62 As a provider, employer, advocate, and citizen - bringing together people of diverse faiths and backgrounds - Catholic health care is rooted in the belief that every person is a treasure, every life a sacred gift, every human being a unity of body, mind and spirit.
Did you know…
For more information, visit the Catholic Health Association at www.chausa.org
Catholic Charities: Providing Help, Creating Hope
Today, the Catholic Charities network — more than 1,600 local agencies and institutions nationwide — provide help, sometimes with government funding, and create hope for 6,597,998 in 2003, regardless of religious, social, or economic backgrounds thanks to the dedication of more than 51,000 staff and 175,000 volunteers.
Catholic Charities USA – the network's national member service center – was founded in 1910 as the National Conference of Catholic Charities. It provides its members a national voice, networking opportunities, training and technical assistance, program development, and financial support.
The organization has also been commissioned by the U.S. Catholic Bishops to represent the Catholic community in times of domestic disaster. For example, Catholic Charities USA allocated more than $31 million in grants to 25 local Catholic Charities agencies for September 11 recovery efforts. These grants — which came from $31.8 million donated to Catholic Charities USA for September 11 disaster assistance — continue to help local Catholic Charities agencies respond to economic and emotional needs of victims more than two years after the tragedy.69
Did You Know …
According to the Catholic Charities USA Annual Survey-At-A-Glance for 200370, the most recent available, the network provided:
Emergency Services to 6,597,998 People
Agencies provided both prepared food and food distribution services.
Food banks & pantries
Soup kitchens
Congregate dining
Home delivered meals
Other food services2,226,630
803,983
1,463,718
307,901
458,227
This category includes those basic services outside of food, shelter, or housing, such as:
Clothing assistance
Financial assistance
Utilities assistance
Medication assistance
Other basic needs assistance34%
12%
12%
3%
39%
Services in this category include short-term (up to six months) emergency shelters and safe houses for the homeless, runaway youth, victims of domestic violence, etc.
These services include services that arise from any calamity-natural or man-made-that exceeds a community or neighborhood's ability to respond without outside intervention.
Includes intermediate housing sites (six months to two years) for individuals and families.
Community-Building Services to 3,108,839 People
Find out more about Catholic Charities at www.catholiccharitiesinfo.org
Agencies provided organized, age appropriate activities at the neighborhood level, such as summer camps for children, the elderly, and the disabled; sports programs; health and employment fairs.
Agencies operated non treatment related permanent housing sites for individuals and families.
Services include assistance to individuals and families with immigration issues, such as legal status and citizenship.
Agencies provided non facilities based services, including vouchers for housing, home repair, loan assistance, housing search, subsidized home purchase, building material banks, and rental assistance.
Services in this category include resettlement and placement, job development, ESL classes, life skills education, job readiness training, and cultural adaptation of refugees.
Humanitarian Aid
Funding for CRS comes from the American Bishops' Overseas Appeal (ABOA). Major support is also derived from public and private grants, individual donors and through a program of sacrificial giving called Operation Rice Bowl.72
Did You Know …
Find out more about Catholic Relief Services at www.catholicrelief.org.
On average, 87% of the residents are low-income.76
Annual operating budgets for all projects (as of 1997) totaled $479.4 million. The average budget was about $300,000 for most projects.77
Nearly 70% — or 128 — of U.S. dioceses sponsor housing or housing-related services.78
Welcoming Migrants & Refugees
Migration and Refugee Services
Over the past 26 years, the Catholic Church in the United States – through the USCCB's Migration and Refugee Services (MRS) – has resettled 912,160,740 refugees, or 33% of the total number of refugees admitted to the United States. 79
The 2003 MRS budget was $36.2 million, the majority of which was comprised of government grants.80 MRS carries out the commitment of the bishops to serve and advocate for immigrants, refugees, migrants, and people on the move.
Did you know that...
Further information on the Office of Migration and Refugees Services is available online at www.usccb.org/mrs.
by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (Migration and Refugee Services)84
Year
Total U.S.
AdmissionsUSCCB
CaseloadUSCCB % of
Total U.S.
Admissions
1975
146,158
64,037
44
1980
327,116
132,326
40
1985
67,704
26,439
39
1990
122,066
32,232
26
1995
99,974
24,800
25
2000
72,518
17,827
25
2002
27,075
6,533
22
2003
28,420
7,425
26
TOTAL for
1975-20032,613,689
834,165
32
Pastoral Care for Immigrants and People On the Move
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that foreign-born persons and their children comprise roughly one in five residents in the United States. The U.S. foreign-born population has increased by 33 percent since 1990. 85
The Catholic Church is concerned also for those members of ethnic communities who cannot sufficiently make use of the common and ordinary pastoral services of local parishes.
More than 40,000 elderly, low-income, low-literate, disabled and persecuted newcomers achieved citizenship through CLINIC's projects. 86
Ethnic Group
Total # in
U.S.Total # of
Catholics
Asian & Pacific Communities
796,700
32,000
Brazilian
800,000
560,000
Czech
50,000
30,000
Ethiopian & Eritean
250,000
4,000
Filipino
1,850,314
1,536,590
Haitian
1,200,000
800,000
Italian
400,000
360,000
Kmhmu
5,000
3,500
Laotian
300,000
7,000
Maya
200,000
150,000
Portuguese
1,500,000
1,350,000
Samoan
95,000
22,000
Slovak
2,000,000
1,600,000
Tongan
28,000
10,000
Vietnamese
1,500,000
450,000
In addition, the Church has developed its outreach to those whose work and lifestyle necessitate frequent travel which prevents regular participation in a local parish community. Diocesan priests, men and women religious, and lay leaders are involved in national, diocesan and parish efforts to provide pastoral outreach to these people, including such diverse groups as airport workers and travelers, seaport workers and cruise ship employees and travelers, race car circuit workers, migrant farm workers, circus and carnival workers, and gypsies. They are linked to the USCCB's Office for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees through national Catholic organizations devoted to providing for the pastoral needs to people on the move wherever they work and travel in the United States.
For more information, see www.usccb.org/mrs/pcmr.
Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC)
In 1988, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops created the Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc. (CLINIC). CLINIC's mission is to enhance and expand delivery of legal services to indigent and low-income immigrants, principally through diocesan immigration programs, and to meet the immigration needs identified by the Catholic Church in the United States.
CLINIC operates as a legal support agency for a rapidly growing network of Catholic charitable immigration programs. CLINIC and its local partner agencies serve vulnerable newcomers, such as INS detainees, refugees, asylum-seekers, families in need of reunification, and victims of trafficking and domestic violence.
By the end of 2003, CLINIC had an annual budget for program services of $5.8 million. They trained and supported 156 member agencies that operated legal offices in 255 sites.88 Its members employ roughly 1,200 attorneys "accredited" to represent immigrants by the federal Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and paralegals who, in turn, serve 400,000 low-income immigrants each year.89
For more information about CLINIC, see www.cliniclegal.org.
Catholic Lay Organizations
For more information, visit the cited organizations' websites and the USCCB's Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women and Youth at www.usccb.org/laity.
Knights of Columbus
"In service to One, in service to all."
The Knights of Columbus, with over 1.7 million members in North America, is a Catholic men's fraternal benefit society founded in 1882. Today, it is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Social and intellectual fellowship is promoted among members and their families through educational, charitable, religious, social welfare, and public relief works.90
Year
Dollars Donated
to CharityVolunteer Service
Hours
1995-2005
More than $1.208 billion
574 million
2005
139,711,619
64,039,706
Find out more at www.kofc.org.
Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary
The Knights of Peter Claver and its Ladies Auxiliary, with over 45,000 members nationwide, is a national Catholic fraternal organization comprised of men, women, young men and young ladies. The organization has been serving the needs of African-American Catholics since 1909. In addition to serving as a support to pastors and bishops, the Knights award scholarships, mentor youth, and contribute to numerous charitable organizations.
In 2002, the Knights of Peter Claver donated:
Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Founded in France in 1833 and established in the United States in 1845, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is comprised of men and women, known as "Vincentians," who strive to grow spiritually by offering person-to-person service to individuals in need.
In 2002, 120,000 members served 15 million people.91
U.S. volunteers in 2003 engaged in:92
The Catholic Church Extension Society of America
"Supporting Missionary Work in America"
Founded in 1905 to extend the Catholic faith in mission dioceses of the United States where resources are insufficient, The Catholic Church Extension Society of America builds awareness of mission needs and raises funds to spread the Gospel message.
Since its founding, Catholic Extension has received and distributed nearly $400 million. For fiscal year 2002, Catholic Extension took in contributions from over 90,000 concerned Catholic priests, religious, and laity and disbursed $14 million to missions,94 including:
Further information is available at www.catholic-extension.org
Parish Giving
Catholic giving to the Sunday collection increased by an estimated $272 million between 2001 and 2002, or an average of 4.8% in all geographic regions of the country. Estimated Catholic giving to local parishes in the Sunday collection grew from $5.573 billion in 2001 to $5.864 billion for 2002.95 By way of comparison, Giving USA 2001, a research publication, estimated that Americans gave $74.3 billion to houses of worship of all faiths, national headquarters of faith traditions, and missionary societies in 2000.96
In 2002, there were 15.9 million registered active Catholic households in the United States97, which on average gave $455 each98 to the Sunday collection in 2002. 99
Approximately $5.384 billion (73 percent) of the entire parish revenue budget for 2000 arrived via the Sunday collection.100 Parishes in the United States raised an estimated total revenue of $7.375 billion in 2000. 101
Some 90 percent of donations to local parishes stay with the parishes to operate churches and schools. The remaining 10 percent — called the cathedraticum — is passed on to the diocese to pay for such expenses as insurance, clergy and layperson salaries, recruiting and training of priests, and building maintenance. Nationally, dioceses average some $33.8 million in annual offertory collections.108
The smallest dioceses average about a tenth of the annual offertory collection of the largest dioceses: $7.9 million compared to $76 million.109
Many bishops conduct annual appeals in their dioceses to address needs of the diocese and local parishes such as social service programs, Catholic schools, youth ministry, seminaries and seminarians, evangelization, parish needs, campus ministry, and priests' retirement.110 The average goal of 2002 diocesan annual appeals was $3.4 million.111 Collections typically exceeded the goal, with the average total collection in excess of $4 million.112
Total bishops' appeal pledges for 2002 are estimated at $635 million.113
National Collections114
Throughout the course of the year, many dioceses participate in 13 national collections coordinated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for specific needs of the Church. These collections are taken up in parishes as a second collection after the Sunday offertory.
The 13 collections are:
Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe. This special collection channels aid through the bishops' conferences of Central and Eastern Europe to meet the needs of rebuilding the Church – training seminarians and lay leaders, reaching out to young people, reviving Catholic charities, and renewing programs of catechesis and evangelization.
Since the collection was begun in 1991, U.S. Catholics have contributed $75 million to the churches of post-communist Russia and Central and Eastern Europe.
For more information, visit www.usccb.org/aee
Catholic Relief Services Collection (CRS Collection) (formerly the American Bishops' Overseas Appeal (ABOA). This appeal supports agencies that build the international social ministry of the Catholic Church through advocacy on behalf of the powerless and impoverished people and relief and resettlement services to victims of natural disasters, war, and religious and ethnic persecution. The CRS Collection helps to fund the work of Catholic Relief Services, the USCCB Department of Social Development and World Peace, relief work of the Holy Father, USCCB's Migration and Refugee Services and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.
In 2004, U.S. Catholics contributed $15.6 million to the CRS Collection/ABOA.
Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD). The Catholic Campaign for Human Development collection was mandated by the U.S. bishops to "address the root causes of poverty in America through promotion and support of community-controlled, self-help organizations and transformative education." Since its establishment in 1970, CCHD has granted $270 million to more than 4,000 community-based, self-help projects initiated and led by people living in poverty. Twenty-five percent of contributions from U.S. Catholics is retained by dioceses to fund local grants and 75 percent is sent to the national office at the USCCB to fund the projects that demonstrate the greatest need.
Learn more at www.usccb.org/cchd
Catholic Communication Campaign (CCC). The CCC produces and supports media projects that promote Gospel values and bring the Catholic Church's message to television, radio and other media, and through special projects of the Catholic press. An annual collection is taken up in the dioceses, which remit 50% of the funds collected to the national office. From these funds, grants are made following recommendations by the USCCB Communication Committee. The remaining portion of the collection is retained by the dioceses for use in local communication projects.
Between 1983 and 2003, the CCC collection has raised $64.2 million to support diocesan and national media efforts.
For more information, visit www.usccb.org/ccc
Catholic Home Missions Appeal. Launched in 1998, the Appeal strengthens the Catholic Church in the United States and its territories where resources are thin and priests are few. In 2003, the Appeal made over $11 million in grants. Grantees include 85 Latin and Eastern Catholic dioceses in Appalachia, the South, the Southwest, the Rocky Mountain states, Alaska, and the islands of the Pacific and Caribbean. The Appeal also supports about 25 organizations and religious communities engaged in home mission work. The appeal funds a wide range of pastoral services, including evangelization, religious education, the maintenance of mission parishes, the training of seminarians and lay ministers, and ministry with ethnic groups, especially Hispanics.
Learn more at www.usccb.org/hm
Church in Latin America. Support for various pastoral projects throughout Latin America and the Caribbean is made possible through the Collection for the Church in Latin America. Projects are at the continental, regional, diocesan and local levels, and include the work of evangelization, formation of laity, religious and seminarians, as well as youth ministry and catechesis. Funding is limited to programmatic expenses and excludes building construction.
Since it was established by the U.S. bishops in 1965, $116,375,154 has been granted to projects throughout Latin America.
Learn more at www.usccb.org/latinamerica
Peter's Pence (Collection for the Holy Father). The Peter's Pence Collection enables the Holy Father to respond with emergency financial assistance to requests for aid to the neediest throughout the world – those who suffer as a result of war, oppression, and natural disasters. It likewise provides the faithful with a tangible opportunity not only to empower the weak, defenseless, and voiceless, but also to sustain those who suffer.
Retirement Fund for Religious (RFR). Now in its 18th year, the Retirement Fund for Religious has generated an unprecedented response from U.S. Catholics. Since 1988, the RFR has distributed over $426 million through restricted grants to any religious institute in the United States that has an unfunded past service liability and both basic, supplemental and special assistance retirement grants to religious institutes based on a formula and criteria approved by the conferences of major superiors and bishops. Ninety-six percent of the donations are invested for present and future retirement needs of the elderly members (religious sisters, brothers, and religious order priests) of the over 500 religious institutes in the United States. Today, nearly 60,000 religious men and women are over the age of 60.
Find out more at www.usccb.org/nrro
Black and Indian Missions. Established in 1884, the National Collection for Black and Indian Missions supports and strengthens diocesan evangelization programs which otherwise would cease. In 2004, the collection disbursed $8.4 million in grants for Black missions and for Native American evangelization programs.115
The Catholic University of America. This national collection provides funding for academic scholarships at The Catholic University of America in Washington. Catholic University, founded in 1887, is the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. bishops. Students are enrolled from all 50 states and almost 100 countries.
Holy Land. This national collection, taken on Good Friday, provides support for the sacred places, and the educational and charitable institutions in the Holy Land, and educates young men for the Missions of the Custody of the Holy Land in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Cyprus, Rhodes, Israel, and Egypt.
Operation Rice Bowl. This collection provides funding for many Third World food security projects promoting agricultural, nutritional, and educational growth and self-sufficiency. Seventy-five (75) percent is remitted to Catholic Relief Services for overseas projects and 25% may be retained in the diocese for local antipoverty programs.
World Mission Sunday. In 1926, Pope Pius XI instituted Mission Sunday, celebrated on the next to the last Sunday in October, as the feast of catholicity and universal solidarity so Christians the world over will recognize their common responsibility with regard to the evangelization of the world. The majority of this collection goes to support the Society for the Propagation of the Faith.
National Collection
Total Diocesan National Collection
Proceeds, 1983-2003
American Bishops' Overseas Appeal
$269,792,660
Catholic Campaign for Human Development
$206,124,432
Church in Latin America
$93,464,205
Catholic Communication Campaign
$65,741,147
American Board of Catholic Missions/Home Missions Appeal
$133,377,087
Aid to the Church in Eastern Europe (total since 1991)
$95,259,786
National Religious Retirement Office (total since 1988)
$418,806,369
TOTAL
$1,282,565,686
Endnotes